Among the known arsine compounds only a few chiral compounds which are useful as ligands in metal-catalyzed asymmetric reactions are known (H. B. Kagan, Asymmetric Synthesis, Vol 5, Ed. J. D. Morrison, Academic Press). When these known arsine compounds are used in metal complexes for asymmetric reactions the optical yields lie in the region of 27% to 39%.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,556,740 and 5,508,438 disclose certain chiral phosphorus compounds as well as complexes of such compounds with Group VIII metals for use as catalysts for asymmetric hydrogenations and enantioselective hydrogen displacements in prochiral allylic systems. U.S. Pat. No. 5,302,738 discloses certain chiral phosphine compounds.
The chiral arsine ligand 2,2'-bis(diphenylarsino)-1,1'-binaphthyl is described in A. Kojima et al., Tetrahedron Letters (May 1997) 38(19): 3459-3460.
Certain optically active arsine compounds are disclosed in S. B. Wild, "Optically active arsines: preparation, uses and chiroptical properties" in The Chemistry of Organic Arsenic, Antimony and Bismuth Compounds, S. Patai ed. (Wiley 1994) ch.3, pages 90-152.